The student newspaper of South Plains College.

Journalism students awarded at intercollegiate competition

South Plains College student Sara Marshall was selected as Editor of the Year for two-year colleges and current or former Plainsman Press staff members won 11 other awards during the annual Texas Intercollegiate Press Association spring competition and convention.

There were 519 participants representing 45 community colleges and universities from across the state at this year’s TIPA convention, which was held March 30-April 1 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in downtown Dallas. TIPA is the largest student press association in the nation.

The Plainsman Press also was recognized with an Honorable Mention Award in the category of Overall Excellence.

Tyler York, a freshman print journalism major from Tallahassee, Florida, received an Honorable Mention award for Headline Writing during a live on-site competition held on March 30.

Marshall, a sophomore photojournalism major from Andrews who currently serves as editor-in-chief of the Plainsman Press, won three first-place awards and a third-place award in the competition for Previously Published material.

Marshall placed first for News Feature Story for an article she wrote about a student who hung a banner from a building in downtown Lubbock which had made national news, Feature Page Design for her page layout featuring a butterfly exhibit at the Science Spectrum in Lubbock, and Single Subject Presentation, and honor she shared with former staff members Chesanie Brantley of Sudan and Nicole Trugillo of Amherst. Marshall also placed third for Newspaper Ad Design.

Among other Plainsman Press staff members receiving awards for Previously Published material is Riley Golden, a sophomore print journalism major from Lubbock. Golden placed first in the category of Critical Review for his article featuring the “Bioshock” video game. Golden currently serves as entertainment editor of the Plainsman Press.

Matt Molinar, a sophomore public relations major from Levelland, placed second in the category of Opinion/Editorial Page Design and received an Honorable Mention Award in the category of News Story for coverage of a Black Lives Matter protest in Lubbock. Molinar currently serves as associate editor of the Plainsman Press.

Dominick Puente, a sophomore print journalism major from Levelland, placed second in the category of Sports Column for a story he wrote about the accusations of rape involving members of the Baylor University football team. Puente currently serves as a sports writer and editorial assistant for the Plainsman Press.

Kaci Livingston, a freshman from Schulenburg, placed third in the category of General Column.

Students participating in the trip and also competing in live contests were: Marshall, who competed in News Writing and Newspaper Design; Brandi Ortiz, a sophomore public relations major from Lamesa who competed in News Photo; Desiree Mendez, a sophomore fromLevelland, who competed in Feature Writing; Steven Gehegan, a sophomore print journalism major fromLubbock, who competed in Print Sports Writing; Jordan Patterson of Lubbock, who competed in Sports Photo; Tovi Oyervidez, a sophomore photojournalism major from Lubbock and Molinar, who competed in Two-Person Photo Essay; Alex Perez, a sophomore public relations major from Lubbock, who competed in Feature Photo; Golden, who competed in Critical Review; Molinar, who competed in PR News Release Writing; Brittny Stegall, a freshman print journalism major from Crosbyton, who competed in Editorial Writing; Stacy Johnson, a sophomore general studies major from Lubbock, who competed in Copy Editing; and Aric Mitchell, a freshman radio, television and film major from Lubbock, who competed in Live Video News.

Plainsman Press staff members have won 156 awards in TIPA competitions since 2004.